Not scared by that? The annual interest on that amount (at a ballpark 10%) comes to 850 BILLION dollars - compare that to the cost of the Iraq War, which is 'only' 310 billion dollars over three years. (So far, of course: this does not include off-budget costs, which could reach 2 trillion dollars.)
That interest money is being paid to the Oligarchy in America, from whom we receive no benefit, except their mis-management of everything. This is basically extortion money.
The personal share of the National Debt of U.S. citizens can be computed two ways:
This figure has earned the term 'Birth Tax', because every newborn American is saddled with this debt at the moment that they draw their first breath.
So, a family of four owes $113,600. A married couple without children owes $56,800.
2) Dividing by the number of individual taxpayers (135 million), this comes to $63,120 per taxpayer.
In this computation, a family of four owes $126,240. But what is also true is that a married couple with no children likewise owes $126,240.
Nobody who voted for George Bush is exempt. Nobody who voted for John Kerry is exempt. Nobody who stuck their head in the sand and failed their duty as a citizen by not voting at all is exempt. Nobody in diapers is exempt. Nobody in a nursing home is exempt.
And nobody reading this who lives in the U.S.A. is exempt.
Now are you scared? But more importantly, you should be angry.
The Oligarchy has the money, and you all have the debt. And your children and grandchildren ...
[copyright 2006 by Gary Edward Nordell, all rights reserved]
Previously published on the 'Dateline Chamesa' blog.